Insight into Shiva Sutras

 

A sutra is a thread and Shiva means that which is auspicious. Among many negative things, take that one positive thing and hold on to it. If someone has fallen in a deep well, what do you do? You help them come up with a rope. That is what Shiv Sutras are meant to do. These are simple one-line sutras that make you aware that your true nature is “Swatmananda Praksha Vapushe”. Your true nature is bliss; your true nature is joy. Your nature is light.

That is why it is said: Namah śrī śambhave svātmānanda prakāśa vapuśe.

I bow down to the wealth that brings peace and fills the body with joy.

How does auspiciousness begin? It happens when the mind turns inwards. When the mind wanders outside, it is caught up in problems and confusion. Do you know what misery is? Misery is when the mind gets caught up in the world and forgets itself. Happiness can be described as remembering yourself.

Suppose a close relative or friend visits you after a long time. You prepare sweets, arrange everything to welcome them and go to the railway station to receive them. You feel thrilled when you finally meet them. The mind instantly blossoms. Where there is no eagerness and anticipation, there is less love.

The mind naturally flows towards that which you love. When you read the word ‘mana’ meaning mind, from the other direction, it becomes “nama.” What does it mean? When the mind turns inward it is namah, and an outward mind is manah. When you enter a temple, you say ‘namah’ and the mind automatically turns inwards.

What attracts the mind outward? It is prosperity, wealth, success and beauty. The sight of anything beautiful draws the mind towards it. The whole world revolves around only one thing, and that is ‘Srī’, which means prosperity. You yearn for knowledge, yearn for happiness, yearn for beauty, wealth, success, advancement – whatever you long for, it is only for one desire, and that is Srī. When we are in a state of namah, when we are introspective, we find Srī and true wealth is born.

‘Śambhave’ – Wealth and prosperity should bring peace. However, often one acquires wealth and problems follow it. While we do need money, along with wealth we also get diseases like stomach pains, ulcers, diabetes, heart attack, etc.

‘Svātmānanda’ – filled with bliss, having a cheerful state of mind. There are some people who do good acts, but do not have peace and joy. But look at children. They are not very serious. They are happy. What kind of happiness do they have? ‘Svātmānanda prakāśā vapuse’ – happiness overflows in them. One characteristic of life is that it should end where it began, and life is a cycle that starts with happiness.

‘Ānandena jātāni jīvanti’ – it is said in the Upanishads: “Life happens in joy and finds completion in joy.” The soul should be filled with happiness – that is the goal of the Shiva Sūtras: svātmānanda prakāśa vapuśe.

How to become free from a sense of doership?

Just keep doing, don’t worry about it. 

I think you have too much time to sit and think, 'Am I the doer or not?' Just do what you are supposed to do.

Every action has a reward; pleasant, unpleasant, or mixed. There are only three types of rewards. When you act, that action brings you some positive reward, or some negative reward, or some positive and negative reward. The effect of all these rewards stay only for some time. So the wise will not worry about it.

In every action there is something positive and there is something that is negative. An action cannot be 100% perfect. Focus on the positive things that develop out of an action. And don’t worry about the effect of the action, just keep moving. 

If you have done a wrong action, that has taught you a lesson not to repeat it next time. If you have done the right action, it encourages you to do many more of the same right actions. 

If you find that in the action you did, there are some things that you could improve, then you can always improve on that. 

Just move on, don’t say, 'I am the doer', or, 'I am not the doer'. Anyway no one is a doer in one sense, and in another sense, yes, you are the doer, because inside of you there are two. 

There is a beautiful story in the Upanishads which says, 'On the tree of this universe, there are two birds sitting, one is enjoying the fruit, the other is just watching, like a witness'.
So, there is one aspect of you that is not doing anything, that is much bigger. And there is one aspect in you that is doing everything. Both are present in you. 

Now you might ask, 'How?'

On one level, you find that you are changing. Your thoughts are changing, your emotions are changing, your body is changing. Yet at another deeper level, there is something in you that is not changing at all; it is the same. So it is not one or the other, it is both together simultaneously.

When guilt eats you up, or pride takes over your head, then you should understand that you are not the doer. Do you get it? 

When you do something very good and you say, 'Oh I did it, I did it', that too makes you unhappy. Doing something good also make you unhappy because you do so much and then you say that nobody recognizes you, nobody listens to you. 

So not being recognized for your good work makes you miserable, and if you do something wrong, that too eats up your spirit and creates a sense of guilt. When such things happen, know that you are not the doer. Be a witness then. 

People who have committed the biggest crime on the planet, somewhere deep inside, they think, 'Hey, I didn’t do it, how did this happen'. They feel surprised and shocked, and they feel that they are not the doer, it just happened. If you talk to the biggest criminals on the planet, you will see that they find themselves being caught by an (criminal) act.

Same way, someone who has done some excellent work, they also feel that it just happened; everything fell into place. That non-doership is an experience in itself.

When you have to do things, then don't say, 'Oh, I am not the doer.' Don’t go into that mode. It will only tear you apart. If you have to focus on some work, focus and just do it. 

I am not a doer, is an experience, sometimes it just dawns on you. And it is also a reminder to you when you are reeling in guilt, or in arrogance.

Is There One God Or Many?

All religions say that there is only one God. Judaism says there is only one God. Christianity speaks of only one God. Hinduism speaks of only one God. It is said, ‘Ekam Sat Vipra’, there is only one God but manifested in many forms. You can adore him in whatever form you want.

There is only one light, but light has seven colors. In the same way, Islam says that there is only one God, but 99 names. Hinduism speaks of the 108 names and 108 forms of God, because all forms belong to one God only. The same God is in every form.

God is space, he is not a person – he is not an object, it is energy. And what is that energy? Jesus called it love. Love is God. And that is what is said in the Upanishads, and in the ancient Vedic Scriptures – God is love, God is energy, He is in you as you, and He is in everybody. Somewhere He shines more, somewhere He is shining less.

In Spain, the sun shines more, and in Berlin it shines a little less. Like that, in some places he is more visible as love and in another place, he is more visible as something else. So, God is energy, and that is what we are all made up of, and everybody is made up of. There is only one God everywhere.

But the difficulty is when one says, ‘My God is the only God. Your God is a false God.’ This is the problem.

‘Only if you believe in this book of mine, you will go to heaven; otherwise you will go to hell.’ That is why this world is suffering today with terrorism because some people think only they have the key to heaven, and not the others. This is not correct.

You have no difficulty in eating Danish pastry, no difficulty eating Chinese food. Just by eating Chinese food, you don’t become Chinese. Tomorrow you don’t start speaking Chinese. You eat Chinese food and you like it. In the same way, we should accept knowledge also. If it is Hinduism, Buddhism, Taoism, Shintoism, Islam, Christianity or Judaism, anything that uplifts human life should be welcome.

Don’t think if you read Buddha’s scriptures or if you read Hinduism, then Jesus will be angry at you, or you have betrayed Jesus. Not at all! This narrow-minded division that people have created is out of ignorance, or fear, or wanting to control. Ignorance mainly.

So we need to bring that big awareness in people. It is so necessary.

I see so many heated arguments, fights, killing and inhuman behaviour. That is why we don’t talk about any religion, just come and breathe. When they breathe, then they realize, ‘Oh, yes, I can feel very good inside’. When you become hollow and empty, you feel good.

Is Buddhism a Part of Hinduism

The answer to this question depends on one’s personal opinion. In India, Buddhism is considered a part of Hindu tradition because Buddha never said I am starting a new religion—he only reformed what was already in existence.

Buddha became a monk in the Hindu tradition and then he shared the path to monkhood with everybody. He never discarded the Gods or Goddesses. He put the Buddha (the enlightened) first, which was already how it was.

The Guru Comes First

In Hinduism, we chant, Guru Brahma, Gurur Vishnu, Guru Devo Maheshwaraha, Guru Saakshat Para Brahma, Tasmai Sree Gurave Namaha.
When translated, this means, first is the Guru. Buddha reestablished the same thing. Instead of Guru, he said Buddha. Buddha means a totally blossomed enlightened person.

In Karnataka, India, all Gurus were called Buddhi. If you go to any ashram and say Buddhi, you will be addressing a Guru. Buddhi also means “heightened intellect” or “the great enlightened one”. So, at that time, enlightened people were called Buddha.  

May All People Be Happy

Another line of text in Buddhism is, "Rakhantu sabba devta, bhavtu sabba Mangalam.” This means, let auspiciousness and peace happen to everybody.
In the Vedas, it is said, "Sarve jana sukhino Bhavantu", which means, let all the people of the world be happy.

Whatever is said in Upanishad, the same thing Buddha spoke! Buddha never said that all the Rishis or saints were wrong. He said, there have been so many Buddhas before me and many will come after me. Take refuge in Buddha. And there is a Buddha hiding inside of you. Take refuge in the Buddha nature inside you.

Hinduism is the Mother of Buddhism

There is virtually no difference between Hinduism and Buddhism. Even His Holiness the Dalai Lama is constantly heard saying that Hinduism is our mother. Hinduism is the mother of Buddhism.

In earlier days, people would do animal sacrifices, and Buddha condemned all that. He said you should not do this sacrifice. In any religion, there is always some such interpolation. Though it was not the original practice of the religion, later on, these things get into the religion. And then people think this is the religion. They leave the philosophy and hold on to the practices. These become causes of contention and then sects develop.

Even in Buddhism, there are Hinayana and Mahayana. Buddha never created Hinayana and Mahayana. There are 32 sects of Buddhism, all mushroomed later on. Which is the one Buddha created? He did not create them at all. He just reformed what was already in practice. Monks were wearing saffron in this country; he wore the same thing. Monks were shaving their heads; he asked all his monks to shave their head. So everything in Hinduism—like begging alms, asking for food, letting go of the ego—Buddha followed the same thing.

Multiple layers of meaning

You know, the Upanishads on one level is just a story. On another level it has a very deep meaning. Gau doesn’t just means cow. Gau in Sanskrit means that which moves. Cows of course move, but it is knowledge that moves you to your goal, that nurtures you, and which is also called Gau.

In those days, they used to use cows for transportation. The bullock carts nurture you, and the cow gives you milk and nurtures you, and so cow is also called Gau and knowledge is also called Gau. Our mind is like a forest, it has so many thoughts, so many things. But when knowledge comes in there, then a transformation happens. So the Guru said, “Satyakama, You take this knowledge and go into the forest”. That means, sit and contemplate and remove the cobwebs from your head. It is only wisdom that can remove the doubts, the cobwebs and the uncertainties.

Like this, the story has multiple layers of meaning; this is one such — “I have given you these many cows (this much knowledge), take it into the forest (of your mind and contemplate and multiply your wisdom)”.

Hearing is one thing, but when it becomes your experience, that same wisdom is multiplied, it has become solid. In The Art of Living you hear, ‘Accept people and situations as they are’, or ‘The present moment is inevitable’, but then in life when you are in a situations then this knowledge arrives and it helps you to assimilate.

Lord Shiva as Nataraja - Part II

There is another story associated with Lord Nataraja. As the Lord was dancing merrily, one of his earrings became loose and fell on the ground. Then it is said that the Lord lifted that small earring with the toes of His foot. What is the meaning behind this? There is a great secret behind this. That is why this is also called as Chidambaram-rahasyam (the secret of the infinity).

As the story goes, when the Lord effortlessly lifted the small earring merely with the toe of His foot, the entire creation was struck with wonder and amazement. Here, what it means is that we grow accustomed to whatever we are listening to around us. We do not find anything amazing or unique in that. It does not astonish us; it does not create a sense of wonder in us. But when that trivial earring was lifted off the ground by the Lord, then one suddenly gets a glimpse of the subtle, the invisible infinity. Here, it shows that this mysterious creation does not operate the way you think it does.

There is a deeper, hidden, miraculous divine power at work behind everything. You must make space in your life for that miracle of the divine to manifest. This is the deep meaning of the story. Otherwise, we usually go through life with our own limited understanding. We tend to think we understand how everything in creation operates, but it is not really so.

In South India, if someone tries to keep a secret, then others can ask him saying, "My dear! What are you trying to hide? Is it some sort of Chidambaram-rahasyam?" People jokingly ask this to one another in the South. 

Who knows and who can really say? Anything can happen at any time! When we realize this, an altogether different dimension of possibilities opens before us. The possibility of the miracles that is hidden in every moment – is what is represented by the Lord lifting the small earring from the ground by His toes and effortlessly placing it back on His ear.

It is said that whatever you read in the Vedas, the Puranas and the Upanishads is not superficial or shallow. It is literally the Truth and you can see and experience it all in this vast Creation, and in this very lifetime. This story is mentioned to illustrate and assure this fact.

There is consciousness present within our whole body, and it is divided in the upper and lower halves of the body. This divine force or consciousness is called as the Kundalini Shakti. The other meaning from this story is to elevate and raise this Kundalini Shakti from the lower centres to the higher centres of the being (From the Sanskrit word ‘Kundala’ literally meaning an earring). When this Kundalini Shakti is awakened and rises within us, then our entire life becomes a dance of joy and bliss. Then nothing in the world can trouble us, and the entire world becomes amazed in wonder when the power of consciousness gets awakened and enlivened within you.

When the Lord Shiva seated deep within you rises and dances in absolute bliss, then the entire Creation is struck with amazement and wonder. This is what happened when Lord Nataraja lifted off the fallen earring from the ground even as He was engrossed in blissful dance. All the gods and goddesses were amazed to see this. It is said at that moment, huge waves of infinite love and bliss swept over the whole of creation and everyone was steeped in joy and happiness, even the gods themselves. And then, in that same state of wonder and bliss, each started dancing in joy. This is what it means.

When you awaken from within, you perceive this entire creation dancing with such joy and total bliss. Everywhere you go, you find the nectar of the Divine pouring. Even when a bird chirps, you find it so beautiful and divine. When the Sky takes on different colours in the day, then that scene also exhilarates you from within. It is that same kind of amazement and happiness that you feel when you meet your beloved. That inner experience brings forth a glimpse of beauty and deep love within you. You find sweetness in everything everywhere. Everything appears new, and fresh. If a baby is crying, then also you find sweetness behind it. If you see a man or a lady walking, or an animal – then such trivial things too fill you with sweetness and adoration. Every particle in this Creation then appears to shine with a different and unique Light; there is uniqueness in everything. You experience the real beauty of creation and this becomes revealed through Lord Shiva’s Tandava as Nataraja. This is the essence behind the story.

So, when you awaken from within, with knowledge and awareness – then you experience the cosmic dance happening every moment within you, and you are the very Lord of that dance. The soul within you, the Shiva Tattva within you unfolds and manifests.

Here during Satsang anyway everyone is dancing happily. But usually it is the outside World that makes you dance (through desires or feverishness). The entire creation is the cosmic dance of Purusha and Prakriti. Every person in the world today is dancing to the tunes of one thing or another. So, at first it is Prakriti or the Mother Divine who makes you dance – to the tunes of anger, desire, lust, greed, egotism etc. What all kinds of actions people do when they are caught in this dance. Is it not a dance? Under the influence of these, people engage in all sorts of activities and drama. There is no dearth of such actions. Wherever you look, you will find people dancing to the tunes of anger, desire, etc. But when the spirit within you strives against these influences of Prakriti, then it rises above these lower urges born of desire and ignorance, and gets engrossed in a dance of bliss and joy – the Ananda Tandava. At that moment, Prakruti is struck with amazement and becomes enamoured to behold this divine dance.

The Devi was not able to fathom and match what Lord Shiva was able to do. We often say that a strong and one-pointed mind can support a feeble body, but if the mind is weak and stuck in negativity, then even if the body is physically strong, it cannot support or take that body forward in life.

This is one of the depictions brought out from this story. The Devi or Prakriti danced and put forward a question to Lord Shiva to unravel. Through Her movements, the Devi says, “O Lord! I dance before you through the eightfold aspects of My divine nature. Would you be able to match my steps and dance along with Me?”

That means, your body (as Prakriti) is asking the Soul (Lord Shiva), “Can You be one with me?”
So, when the soul awakens, it rises in a blissful dance and proclaims, “O Devi! O Prakriti! You are mine and a part of me only. I am the Supreme Lord of all creation”. By way of this divine dance of bliss, the Shiva Tattva dwelling deep within us all establishes its sole lordship and presence as the Master of all Creation – being endowed with all divinity and beauty.

Have you noticed that there is a ring of fire all around Lord Nataraja? It means that this divine dance is not something that takes place at the gross material level of the World. It happens in the subtle world, which is the world permeated by Shakti, by the Divine primordial energy. This divine dance is a scene set within the subtle invisible realms of creation, and is happening at all times ceaselessly. There is a ring or large halo of flames around Lord Nataraja’s dance to show its inseparable and underlying connection with the Shakti or the primordial Energy.

What is the relation of this dance with Mahashivratri? On the occasion of Mahashivratri, when the entire atmosphere becomes so filled with positivity, when all the planets are favourably placed and aligned, then you are able to go deep into meditation very effortlessly, and are able to experience the blissful Shiva Tattva. You are able to connect with the Shiva Tattva and also feel the omnipresence of the primordial Energy (Shakti). This is the importance of Mahashivratri.

Upanishad means sitting close to the Master, not just physically, but also mentally

15 April 2010
Los Angeles, CA, USA

In Sanskrit, Upanishad means sitting close – sitting close to the Master, not just physically, but also mentally. It signifies the finite getting close to the infinite, the known reaching out to the unknown. The Upanishads are dialogues between the Master and student from ages ago. There are nearly 100 Upanishads available today out of which eleven are very important. The Master is the embodiment of wisdom and the student represents a spiritual seeker eager to come closer to wisdom.
There are so many levels of conflict in the universe. Despite these conflicts how does one get mentally close? First, we invoke peace. One can only come mentally close when there is peace. Where there is mistrust and doubt, there can be no transfer or exchange of knowledge. Thus, all of the Upanishads begin with a prayer for three types of peace: - “Om Shanti, Shanti, Shanti” (Shanti is a sanskrit word meaning peace.)
“Let us have peace at the physical level, at the level of thoughts and emotions, and finally the innermost peace of the soul. Let the Divine protect us both and bestow wisdom upon us. Let us not hate one another, but let us come together in peace.”

“That which you cannot express is Love.
That which you cannot reject/renounce is Beauty.
That which you cannot avoid is the Truth.”

~ Sri Sri Ravishankar

© The Art of Living Foundation For Global Spirituality

'You move from one perfection to another higher perfection'

Bangalore ashram, Feb. 6:

Q: Guruji, I often see people bow down to you. Is doing all that necessary?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: No, no, not at all. These things are really insignificant. You know, these outer gestures are insignificant. Don’t give too much importance to them. All these gestures don’t matter. We all are connected from a deeper level, level of heart. That’s how we have met and we are all here.

Q: Yesterday you talked about leela(game). One can comprehend it intellectually but how to make it an inner experience?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You don’t have to make it an experience. You simply have to wake up and see life is a game. Wake up this moment when I am speaking. Whatever happened till now, is it not like a dream? You had dinner this evening, meditated in the morning, did yoga in morning and went to bed last night, and if you go to your own memory there were good events, bad events, you had profit, you had loss but right this moment it’s all gone.

Wake up this moment and see from tomorrow to the next 10 years is also like a dream! When you realize this whole phenomenon that has happened in the past and future is all like a play, a game. You don’t have to think this is a concept and I have to experience it. My dear, memory is memory. Your thinking that you have to experience memory is a concept and your thinking that you don’t have it is again a concept. You simply have to realize right away it is a dream. This could be a dream. That very moment you feel a sense of relief. A soothing wave overtakes you. Don’t wait that someday you will experience it’s all a game.

May be after you leave the body you will experience one day. Then also you will realize I could have done that much before.

Q: What is difference between dispassion and indifference?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Well, in indifference there is a sense of apathy, rejection and disappointment. In dispassion there is joy and enthusiasm.

Q: Do we all have a purpose in life or we can all come and go when it is? If there is one purpose what is it?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You know it’s best to take out paper and pen, and list out what is not the purpose of life. By negating it will be easier for you.

Q: Is Guruji the best Guru? Is Art of Living the best spiritual path? People say it is the best. Isn’t it a seed of war, calling my belief to be the best? The symbols of other religions in Vishalakshi Mantap (meditation hall in the ashram) tell us that all other religions are also good.

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: I leave it up to you. You discuss and decide. Go through all the confusion and come to your own conclusion. I never say it is the best and I also don’t say it is not the best. It is up to you.

It will not be the truth to say it is not the best. And it sounds very funny for whenever someone says, ‘it is the best’, you have a sort of resistance for that. So sometimes some of these questions are best not answered. I am not here to clarify your doubts. I am here to create more doubts.

Doubt is always about something which is positive. When somebody tells you ‘I love you’ and you say ‘really’. But do you say really when somebody says ‘I hate you’? You doubt your capabilities and you never doubt your weaknesses. You are so sure of your weaknesses. You doubt in the honesty of people and never in their dishonesty. Nature of doubt is such that it always clings to something which is positive. So if you have a doubt I will encourage you that this is very positive.

Q: Guruji you said to be a perfectionist is cause of stress. Yet everything about you is so perfect. You are perfect, your actions are perfect, your words are perfect, your understanding of God is so perfect, this Ashram is perfect and so many other things. What is the difference between your perfect thinking or, mine or ours?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Just that you have to look yourself in the mirror. That’s it. You move from perfection to perfection. You move from one perfection to another higher perfection. That’s how you have to look at life. Otherwise you see this is not perfect , everything is imperfect, everything is hopeless. And we tend to get into negative framework. Isn’t it?

Q: What is upanishad?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Sitting close by and listening is Upanishad. Upanishad is a collection of discourses of high knowledge, how it was transmitted from a Master to students. It is very interesting.

In one of the Upanishads, it is beautifully said. Once a boy goes to his father who is also his Guru and asked what is God. Father replied, ‘Food is God’ for everything grows from food, everything is sustained by food and in the lack of it, everything dissolves and everything again becomes food. So the boy went and thought about it for several months, understood all about food and came back to his father, and again asked ‘What is God?’

The father, also his Guru, said, ‘Prana is God’. The boy went, thought and understood all about prana, how it is going in and out of the body, how many types of prana are there and read all experiments about prana.

He again came back to his father and asked, ‘What is God?’ The father looked at child’s face, so glowing and so vibrant. Father said, 'Ok, the mind is Brahman, mind is God.' Like that, the boy went and thought till he finds the ultimate bliss. Neither the student complaint to the teacher that he was told, ‘Food is God, but it is not the ultimate, you told me the wrong thing'. He simply came and again asked the question. So this is ancient way of teaching step by step – food, then prana, then the mind, then the inner spirit, then the universal spirit, bliss.

Bliss is Divinity, the space. You are like the space. Then he said, 'There is no difference between you, me and the infinite self. We all are one. The Self, Guru and the universal energy are not different. All are made up of one substance. Today if you talk to scientists who study string theory, who study quantum physics they will say the same thing that is said in the upanishads. In upanishads, it was said thousands of years ago, ‘God is not a person, sitting somewhere up in heaven but God is present everywhere. He is omnipresent and omnipotent, the energy of which you are also made up of, everything is made up of’.

“That which you cannot express is Love.
That which you cannot reject/renounce is Beauty.
That which you cannot avoid is the Truth.”
~ Sri Sri Ravishankar



© The Art of Living Foundation
For Global Spirituality